Further Reading: Making Sure Your Financial Resolution Sticks

Kah Lok shares his B.E.S.T method:

B: BestSet goals that scare you a little, but refrain from ridiculous targets you don’t even believe you can hit. If you conquer the belief, half the battle is won.E: Eye-ballEye-ball means putting your goal where you get to SEE it everyday and to constantly remind yourself.S: ScriptScript refers to writing your goal down on paper instead of just thinking about them in your head. Writing brings clarity, and clarity is POWER.T: TimelineSet a timeline to your resolutions and be specific. E.g. I’m earning $100,000/year of passive income from my reits by 31st Dec 2018.

Rave Ong, on the other hand, has a S.M.A.R.T goal setting method:

S: SpecificYour goals have to be specific, like say 10%, or $1000 per month savings, etc etc. M: MeasurableA: AchieveableOne cannot control the markets or investment instruments. So focus on what one canR: RealisticYour goal have to be achieveable. Do not put goals like, save $10k every month when monthly income is less than $10k. T: TimelineHow long do you need to achieve it?Add-on:
Set the goals according to your own requirements. Your closest friends, family are not you, so do not use their standards as the basis point.
I would set THREE different goal levels for a start, so as to gauge myself. That way, the goal that is to be set at the start of next year would be more motivating, rather than for it to collect dust.

Vanessa Ng believes in having the year end bonus in mind.

This can be kick-start by deciding on the different investment types that one wishes to diversify his portfolio with.

Allocate a small portion for the riskier investments such as cryptocurrencies and put a limit on how much you’re willing to lose. This makes investing less emotional.
Set a separate monthly savings target should one plan to buy big-ticket item. Having a buffer of liquid cash for sudden, unplanned investments is quite important to me because you never know when an opportunity will come.
Beyond that, setting aside a budget for self improvement is an important investment too. It can be learning a new language or a new skill such as painting or driving. Sharing all these with a friend or your partner helps to keep you accountable because the drive tends to fade with time.

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